Superintendent DeBarbieri's announcements for September 15, 2023

September 15, 2023

Dear Parents, Guardians and Staff, 

The first full week of the 2023-24 school year is officially in the books. I’ve had the pleasure of spending time in our classrooms this week and I have found that our students are settling into their routines, making new friends and having a lot of fun. 

Our staff is enthusiastic and I’m excited for parents and guardians to hear what’s in store for their children this school year. I strongly encourage you to attend your child’s school’s curriculum night. The dates are listed below.

I have a few announcements to share with you today: 

• Registration is now open for our 2023-2024 after school enrichment programs. Programs are available at all of our elementary schools and Ray Middle School. Parents/guardians must register students by Friday, September 22nd. Principals sent out information about their building’s offerings on ParentSquare, but you can also learn more and register on our website.

• Please contact your child's school with any requests to update your contact information. We use the contact information on file in SchoolTool to deliver important updates and emergency closure information through ParentSquare, so it is important to make sure your school has your contact information correct in SchoolTool.

• Ray Middle School held its Curriculum Night for 6th Graders on Wednesday and Durgee Junior High School held its Curriculum Night on Thursday night. Both nights were fantastic and we were excited that parents and guardians had a chance to spend some time in our buildings with our staff. Here’s the remaining schedule of Curriculum Nights:

  • Palmer Elementary on Tuesday, September 19th

  • Van Buren Elementary on Tuesday, September 19th

  • Elden Elementary on Wednesday, September 20th

  • Ray Middle School Grade 7 on Thursday, September 21st

  • Reynolds Elementary on Tuesday, September 26th

  • McNamara Elementary on Wednesday, September 27th 

  • C.W. Baker High School on Thursday, September 28th

• Our District’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) Community Committee is still collecting Halloween costumes to donate to elementary school students in our district. You can donate gently loved costumes for elementary age students at your school until September 29th. Please see our website for details and please save the dates for our Halloween Costume Pick-up on October 10th-12th.

• Our Bees are in action and if you can’t make it to the game you can watch a live stream of home contests on hudlTV. Games at Pelcher-Arcaro Stadium and in Baker High School Main Gymnasium will be streamed for free. Our football team has its home opener tonight vs. Elmira and those in the attendance will be the first to see a special welcome video created by Baker High School students. Thank you to the student athletes featured in the video and to Zoe Howroyd, senior film student, for editing this important video. Watch the video here! Good luck to all student-athletes with games this weekend. You can check out our athletic schedule on our website and follow our Athletics Department on Twitter.

• Good luck to our Marching Bees as they compete on Saturday, September 16th at the Mohonasen field band competition.

• Calendar reminder: There is no school for students on Monday, September 25th. 

Please continue to check ParentSquare, your email and our website, for important updates. As always, please feel free to contact us with any questions you may have. 

Have a great weekend. Go Bees! 

Sincerely,

Dr. Joseph M. DeBarbieri
Superintendent of School